London Clubs – UK Supreme Court finds that gaming profits from bets staked did not include chips and vouchers distributed free of charge for promotional reasons

It was held that non-negotiable chips and free bet vouchers provided free of charge by casino operators to selected gamblers to encourage them to gamble were not to be included in computing the casinos’ “bankers’ profit” from bets “staked” and, thus, were excluded from gaming duties. Although this finding is not relevant for HST purposes given that ETA s. 187(1) has effectively been overridden by s. 7(7) of the Games of Chance (GST/HST) Regulations, the decision includes an extensive description of the different attributes of such chips and vouchers. This may shed light on the sort of thing described in s. 7(7) regarding “a right to play or participate in a game of chance given away free of charge by the distributor [e.g., the casino operator].”

Neal Armstrong. Summary of Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (Appellant) v London Clubs Management Ltd (Respondent) [2020] UKSC 49 under Games of Chance (GST/HST) Regulations, s. 7(7)A-A₃(ii).